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Suggest Treatment For Numbness In Arms And Legs
Question: Recently I have had problems with my arms and legs. they seek to fall asleep or start tingling when I I am sitting in the couch or laying down. It also seems to be getting worse over time, and stretching doesn't help.
Brief Answer:
Please provide some more details in history.
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXXXX,
Thanks for being at Healthcaremagic.
I'm Dr.Ajay Panwar,a neurologist and I'd surely help you with your query but it's just that I need some more details regarding your clinical history to have a clear picture about your problem.Please clarify the following points:
1)For how long you are having this problem,whether days, weeks or months?
2)Whether it is persistent throughout the day or intermittently improves?
3)If it improves and aggravates intermittently, what are the factors which improve it or aggravate it?
3)You mentioned that it starts when you are sitting in couch or lying in bed. Does it mean that it improves after a few minutes you stand up from the couch or bed? If that is the case, does it improve if you change position in bed while lying down itself,or does it improve while sitting up from the lying down position in bed?
4)Does it affect both your arms and both your legs?
5)Is it associated with any loss of hot,cold or touch sensations on your limbs?
6)Is it associated with any weakness or loss of strength(like inability in raising arms above shoulders,weakness of grip,difficulty in standing up from squatting position or difficulty in gripping slippers)in limbs?
7)Is it associated with any difficulty in micturition/passing urine?
8)You said that your problem is worsening over time,how can you say that?I mean what is the objective parameter for that?(Is it that it is occurring more frequently now?Does it last for more long now? You need to make me clear that how is it presently worse in comparison to last week.)
9)Lastly,are you having any significant past medical history?Any other illness like 'Diabetes'?
Please give me details about these and I shall be glad to help you.
Dr.Ajay Panwar
MD,DM(Neurology)
Please provide some more details in history.
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXXXX,
Thanks for being at Healthcaremagic.
I'm Dr.Ajay Panwar,a neurologist and I'd surely help you with your query but it's just that I need some more details regarding your clinical history to have a clear picture about your problem.Please clarify the following points:
1)For how long you are having this problem,whether days, weeks or months?
2)Whether it is persistent throughout the day or intermittently improves?
3)If it improves and aggravates intermittently, what are the factors which improve it or aggravate it?
3)You mentioned that it starts when you are sitting in couch or lying in bed. Does it mean that it improves after a few minutes you stand up from the couch or bed? If that is the case, does it improve if you change position in bed while lying down itself,or does it improve while sitting up from the lying down position in bed?
4)Does it affect both your arms and both your legs?
5)Is it associated with any loss of hot,cold or touch sensations on your limbs?
6)Is it associated with any weakness or loss of strength(like inability in raising arms above shoulders,weakness of grip,difficulty in standing up from squatting position or difficulty in gripping slippers)in limbs?
7)Is it associated with any difficulty in micturition/passing urine?
8)You said that your problem is worsening over time,how can you say that?I mean what is the objective parameter for that?(Is it that it is occurring more frequently now?Does it last for more long now? You need to make me clear that how is it presently worse in comparison to last week.)
9)Lastly,are you having any significant past medical history?Any other illness like 'Diabetes'?
Please give me details about these and I shall be glad to help you.
Dr.Ajay Panwar
MD,DM(Neurology)
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Shanthi.E
It had been happening for a few months but I didn't pay much attention as it didn't always happen. and if I shifted position when it happened I could ease it. I put it to tight muscles from horseback riding.
it goes away when I am up and moving. it effects both arms and and both legs but it seems to effect the left side more. it sometimes has a numb feeling but I don't loose feeling or movement. other times there is loss of feeling and when it cones back it isn't accompanied with the usual tingling of something waking up.
It has been happening with more frequency and sometimes it sets in faster.
I don't have any medical problems or history. no diabetes, no allergies and I am in good shape.
it goes away when I am up and moving. it effects both arms and and both legs but it seems to effect the left side more. it sometimes has a numb feeling but I don't loose feeling or movement. other times there is loss of feeling and when it cones back it isn't accompanied with the usual tingling of something waking up.
It has been happening with more frequency and sometimes it sets in faster.
I don't have any medical problems or history. no diabetes, no allergies and I am in good shape.
Brief Answer:
You need to undergo a thorough neurological examination.
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXXXX,
Thanks for being in follow-up.
Your typical history of having these symptoms in specific positions and improvement in symptoms on changing position or posture is pointing towards the most common and physiological cause of tingling, and that is transient reversible block of nerve conduction due to pressure effect, when we are in a particular position for some time. Improvement in your symptoms while you are up and walking, also favours the same.
But, what is very unusual for it is that you are having these symptoms in all four limbs. I say it unusual because, in any body posture it is not possible that the nerves of all 4 limbs get compressed at the same time. Also, as you said your tight muscles due to horse riding are possibly not causing it because for that matter, all 4 limbs muscles might not have been affected by the horse riding and if it was the cause, why would it improve in changing positions?
Also, physiologically and clinically there is no such entity described that tight muscles causing nerve compression.
Neurologically, it is hard to localize the pathology just on the basis of history. Still, I can think of an intermittent compressive effect at the cervical spinal cord level, which can result inasymmetric (more on left than right, in your case) tingling and numbness in all 4 limbs by a lesion like arachnoid cyst.
Other important causes of intermittent tingling should be ruled out as-vitamin B12 deficiency, Diabetes, Peripheral neuropathy, Cervical spinal cord compression(as mentioned above), Multiple sclerosis. [But, strongest point against these causes is improvement on change in posture].
I advise you to visit a neurologist and get a dedicated neurological examination done for the above reasons. If everything is ruled out, anxiety or somatization disorder can be the cause as it causes such symptoms in a large number of patients in clinical practice.
Hope I have cleared your queries. If you still have some queries, I shall be glad to help you else, you can close the thread and rate it.
Dr.Ajay Panwar.
You need to undergo a thorough neurological examination.
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXXXX,
Thanks for being in follow-up.
Your typical history of having these symptoms in specific positions and improvement in symptoms on changing position or posture is pointing towards the most common and physiological cause of tingling, and that is transient reversible block of nerve conduction due to pressure effect, when we are in a particular position for some time. Improvement in your symptoms while you are up and walking, also favours the same.
But, what is very unusual for it is that you are having these symptoms in all four limbs. I say it unusual because, in any body posture it is not possible that the nerves of all 4 limbs get compressed at the same time. Also, as you said your tight muscles due to horse riding are possibly not causing it because for that matter, all 4 limbs muscles might not have been affected by the horse riding and if it was the cause, why would it improve in changing positions?
Also, physiologically and clinically there is no such entity described that tight muscles causing nerve compression.
Neurologically, it is hard to localize the pathology just on the basis of history. Still, I can think of an intermittent compressive effect at the cervical spinal cord level, which can result inasymmetric (more on left than right, in your case) tingling and numbness in all 4 limbs by a lesion like arachnoid cyst.
Other important causes of intermittent tingling should be ruled out as-vitamin B12 deficiency, Diabetes, Peripheral neuropathy, Cervical spinal cord compression(as mentioned above), Multiple sclerosis. [But, strongest point against these causes is improvement on change in posture].
I advise you to visit a neurologist and get a dedicated neurological examination done for the above reasons. If everything is ruled out, anxiety or somatization disorder can be the cause as it causes such symptoms in a large number of patients in clinical practice.
Hope I have cleared your queries. If you still have some queries, I shall be glad to help you else, you can close the thread and rate it.
Dr.Ajay Panwar.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Ashwin Bhandari
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